Garrett Rejects 300, 299 Games -- Toll Now 5 In 2 Seasons

September 29, 1985|By Don Lightner of the Sentinel Staff

In the past two seasons, J.J. Garrett, secretary of the Greater Orlando Bowling Association, has recommended to the American Bowling Congress that it reject three 300 games and two 299 games because lanes were out of compliance with ABC regulations.

The most recent rejections came on Sept. 18 at Orlando Colonial Lanes in the Gulfstream League involving Suheil Jammal's 300 and John Sather's 299.

Garrett, who is ABC's repesentative in Orlando and Kissimmee, found a buildup of oil in the middle of the lanes, which in bowling parlance is called a ''wall or a block.'' Garrett's recommendations always are followed by the ABC.

Colonial Manager Wally Tobias challenged Garrett's finding and called for another inspection by an outside party. Paul Bollin, ABC representative in Miami, inspected the lanes and his report supported Garrett's findings.

Tobias refused to comment on the matter.

It marked the second consecutive year that Colonial has been found out of compliance, according to Garrett. Carl Breaman and Carl Haas rolled 300 games but lost ABC recognition.

Winter Park's Aloma Lanes also was denied recognition of a 299 by Don Gorman Jr. in 1984, and Orlando Semoran, Kissimmee and Orlando Fairvilla lanes have been found out of compliance in past years, according to Garrett.

Garrett said he feels like crying whenever he has to recommend to the American Bowling Congress that an honor score should be turned down.

''This is one of the worst parts of the job,'' Garrett said. ''It never gets any easier.''

Garrett, who is starting his second season as secretary of the GOBA, checks lanes whenever a 298, 299 and 300 game or an 800 series is recorded. Garrett is notified by the proprietor or manager.

ABC has strict rules on lane maintenance. If the lanes fail to pass muster, the ABC refuses to recognize the score, and the bowler loses his award, which usually is a diamond ring.

''What we are striving for is to give the bowler fair scoring conditions,'' Garrett said.

There are three steps that a lane inspector takes to find out if the lanes are in compliance.

1. He walks down to the head pin area and looks back toward the foul line. He can see streak marks, which shows where the oil is and where it isn't.

2. He gives three smear tests by placing his fingers across four boards at three different areas.

3. He gives a tack-tile test by placing his fingers on the outside board, sliding them to the center. This gives him a feel of oil distribution.

4. The lane analyzer then can be used but only with the proprietors' approval.

Garrett said the ABC has set guidelines for centers to follow.

1. No oil at all.

2. Oiling lanes evenly from gutter to gutter.

3. Crowning -- gradually increasing oil from the gutter to the center (20th board) and decreasing the oil at the same rate.

One of the most talked about subjects in bowling is the escalation of scores. This was called a major problem by Earl Anthony in a recent interview published in The Orlando Sentinel.

And the major culprit is urethane that was introduced in the 1970s to replace lacquer, a highly flammable substance. Unlike lacquer, oil does not meld into urethane. Thus, it (oil) moves when it is rolled over by a bowling ball.

Since most bowlers are right-handed, using the area between the 5th and 15th boards, oil has a tendency to move toward the center. It is possible that a block can occur without management's knowledge.